A total of 27 people died and another 22,000 more were injured due to landslides and overflown rivers during the raining season since January in Colombia, officials said on Tuesday.

"Colombia is having a strong winter season," said Luz Pulido, director of the Bureau of Prevention and Attention to Disasters.

According to Pulido, the hardest-hit areas are the northern and western parts of the country.

In the northern Bolivar province, Cauca River spilled near Achi Municipality, causing flooding in the Las Flores and Corcovado regions, Pulido said, adding that 1,681 people in 224 families in the northwestern province of Antioquia were displaced.

Avalanches in the rural area destroyed homes, crops and killed animals and unauthorized house buildings in towns and cities were the most affected, Pulido said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 7, 2008)